Dr. Leeshe Grimes started her journey in education at Martin Luther King Elementary School, launching what would become a lifelong love of learning. Grimes attended JFK Middle School and graduated from Proctor in 2002. Today, she is the CEO and Founder of her own practice, Elevated Minds, established after becoming a National Certified Counselor and Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor. Her credentials further include Registered Play Therapist; she is also a psychotherapist, MD Board approved supervisor, motivational speaker and retired U.S. Combat Army veteran.
Since her days in Utica, Dr. Grimes has seen the world. She has lived around the globe, following a path charted when she chose to serve her country after high school in the U.S. Army. Deployed in combat four times, she served two tours in Afghanistan and two in Iraq. While serving, she continued her education, eventually landing in Maryland as her final post and current home. There, she completed her doctorate in Counselor Education and Supervision.
Growing up in Cornhill, her early years shaped her professional life today. Even then, she was interested in mental health, long before the term became mainstream. “A lot of times people don't realize, especially in Black and brown communities, that when it comes to mental health, we think it's something that doesn't affect us or we just don't know the name for it. So we make sure that they do know now. With education, I provide a lot of information to help break the stigma around mental health and to build emotional intelligence from a young age. My youngest patient is four and my oldest patient is 78,” Dr. Grimes reports.
As a teenager, she recalls being featured in an article in the Utica Observer-Dispatch, nominated for being a positive role model. Credited with having a strong mindset, that recognition sparked something in her to achieve at the highest level. “It's what you choose to become regardless of your environmental circumstances. At age 15, I became interested in why people do the things that they do.” Those questions didn’t always have cheerful answers, as she openly discloses the life she experienced as a
child. “There was a lot of trauma. Just losing a lot of people to gun violence. I wasn’t necessarily living in poverty, but we had just enough, if that makes sense and I believe that's what shaped me. I absolutely believe it is Utica and growing up in Cornhill. There were happy moments alongside it all. I am so resilient to this day, and while it was unfortunate to be exposed to so much at a young age, it has actually helped me in my work today with the communities that are dealing with some of the same things that I was dealing with when I was 14 years old,” Dr. Grimes shares.
Combining mental health and physical health is a key part of her personal and professional recipe for progress. Today, she is the co-owner of Profusion Gym. Combining physical and mental health, her clients range from NBA and NFL players to disadvantaged school age students. “I’ve been commissioned by the Governor of Maryland to serve on the health equity commission. We're trying to dismantle the racism within the medical system, which affects the barriers to health and just getting care
medically. This is also part of the work I do through Elevated Minds and at my gym, where we focus on total wellness. We partner with many student-athletes in the schools, integrating both the physical and mental health components to ensure they have consistent access to quality mental health care.”
As a Proctor student, she was a three-season athlete, competing in cheer, basketball and track. Coaches and teachers kept her moving in the right direction. One teacher in particular stands out. “Mrs. Patricia Scaramella, I met her in seventh grade and she supported me when I was just having those rough days. I didn't have to say anything. She just knew, and she was always there. When I entered the Young Scholars program, she became my mentor. She had a huge impact on me. She just understood and never judged. You didn't have to say too much. You could just go to her and sit in silence. She knew when something was wrong, and she was always present. I admire her for that. I am still connected with her today. When I go home, I call her and we go to lunch. I've been out of school for 20-plus years now
and still connect with her just like when we first met when I was in seventh grade,” Dr.Grimes relays.
Today, her mission includes broadening her impact by reaching more people through her writing. She provides services in schools for teachers, students and parents. She is also busy developing mental health workbooks. After repeated requests from colleagues, she made her process even more accessible by self-publishing her work on Amazon. “This year was the year that I stepped fully into writing. I have different research articles out there, but I stepped fully into writing and becoming an author. I’ve released a total of 11 books, ten where I'm the solo author and my most recent as a
co-author. With that, I also became a publishing company. I write, edit and publish all of my own work,” a process that’s brought trials and tribulations, Dr. Grimes explains. She hopes to help others share their work through her newfound publishing umbrella, continuing to evolve her efforts to meet community needs. “I wake up in the middle of the night and write. Sometimes it's from my childhood experiences, my military experience or just life in general. That is what inspires me,” says Dr. Grimes.
Dr. Grimes doesn’t lead with her accolades, but she has acquired many since her high school days at Proctor. She is heavily involved in the American Counseling Association, serving on the executive committee in the Maryland branch, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. and she also holds positions within mental health organizations nationally and globally. She has been recognized by Forbes, the New York Journal, Business Insider, Disruptor Magazine and the 2023 “Who's Who?” in her field.
When asked what advice she’d give Proctor High School students today, she didn't think twice before emphasizing that mistakes don’t define you. “Your circumstances don't determine what your future is. I say that as someone who was once expelled in eighth grade for fighting, although I didn't start the fight, I did end up getting expelled. However, I had teachers who knew that wasn't my character, and I was able to come back. That could have been the end of me. People judged me for that incident. But here I am today, a doctor, making an impact in so many ways. How you start isn't how you finish. Don't let your current circumstances determine what your future is. You decide what you want to become,” says Dr. Grimes.